level respawning rewrite

[NimbusBP1729]

We're in desperate need of rethinking how we do level respawn.

Here's the proposal: You start out with 3 lives. Whenever you die with 0 lives you respawn in the studyroom(This idea was borrowed from someone but I don't know the source). Eventually we should start out with 0 lives, but we don't have many ways to gain new lives so that is a secondary issue.

Whenever you die, with >0 lives you respawn in the level you died in and end up at the most recent checkpoint door within it.

We could optionally keep the gameover screen, but we should consider having the option of continuing starting from the studyroom or starting the game afresh... also from the studyroom.

Refers to #926

[MaddieM4]

I wholeheartedly support this. I think this makes a lot of sense from the game design perspective, in a world where it's easy to die and it takes forever to get back to where you were.

The only alternative I could offer would be to have the whole group come with you, and whenever you die, you simply switch to controlling someone else who hasn't died yet. But that's reliant on so much secondary stuff being done, when we really need a solution now, and Nimbus' recommendation is more than serviceable.

[kyleconroy]

No need to have the concept of lives. You have one life. When you die, you spawn back at the last save point. Simple as that. The only time you ever spawn in the study room is if we force you to go there (after you die by Gilbert) or if you are playing some "hardcore" mode that forces you to spawn in the studyroom everytime you die.

[didory123]

Refer to my comment in #926.

I like the idea of lives though, I feel like it's a waste to throw it away. I'm just gonna go on a ramble and post some ideas I've stolen from the storydev wiki here:

1. Using gold to respawn - If you pay a large sum of gold, you are able to resurrect upon spot
2. Pits - When you die an instant death by falling off of pits, etc, you simply respawn at the beginning of the level with a health deduction. Apparently Zelda does this to prevent player frustration, but don't quote me on that. Alternatively, the player can simply respawn near the pit with a health deduction.

[NimbusBP1729]

resurrect upon spot

does this mean respawning right where you died?

I've heard the respawn near pit suggestion and I don't think it reasonable for a sidescroller like ours. Off the top of my head it seems like it would be more convoluted just for making the game easier for people.

Dredged up an example http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=SKVVv387n6g#t=2m21s

Imagine if at 2:21 edisonout had landed in a pit rather than on land. I don't think it makes sense to transport her back to the log. The net difference in player motion is very extreme.

In Zelda we're looking at the game from a above and heights are practically non-existent. When you fall in water (I don't remember if Zelda NES actually had pits) you're never very far from where you died.

[NimbusBP1729]

@kyleconroy was going to work on this today, but I wanted to clear up some confusion

When you die, you spawn back at the last save point. Simple as that. The only time you ever spawn in the study room is if we force you to go there

So if I haven't saved any states and I die in the middle of village forest where do I go? The beginning of village-forest?